Afrobarometer's regular surveys of public attitudes toward governance, democracy and economics in 18 African countries shows that experiences of crime and concerns over safety in South Africa are indeed quite prevalent, but are by no means exceptional. People in some African countries are as, or even more, fearful than South Africans, and there are several countries in which people confront crime more frequently than do South Africans. The results also show that the South African Police Service, despite having higher levels of physical and human capital than its counterparts to the north, often lags well behind in terms of transparency and community relations.